Writings about Education and Life in New England

Why is anyone acting as though the FBI will not get to the bottom of this case? Seriously, I know it seems hard to imagine, but despite what Donald Trump would have you think . . . the FBI is really freaking good at what it does.

No, the FBI is not going to get a definitive answer on what happened in that bedroom.

But whether this party happened in the first place, and whether Kavanaugh and Blasey Ford were both there? I think they can manage that. Why are we even thinking this is going to be hard for them?

After all, there are tons of leads. For one thing, there is a date on Kavanaugh’s calendar — July 1, 1982 — when he went to a party at Tim Gaudette’s house with many of the boys who supposedly attended the party Blasey Ford referenced in her testimony. Go talk to some of those guys. Visit Gaudette’s house, see what it looks like, and if it matches Blasey Ford’s description. Talk to Chris Garrett (“Squi”) — who dated Blasey Ford and supposedly introduced her to Kavanaugh. See what he knows. Start talking to some of the other guys, like Mark Judge. Remind him of a few details from the case, and see what he has remembered. And what about Blasey Ford’s friend, who she says was there — Leland Keyser. Talk to her a little more, see what she remembers.

This is nothing revolutionary. This is what a good law enforcement agency does. Local police departments do it all the time. You talk to people. You ask them pointed questions, you remind them about dates, you get them to tell you things they remember. Those things they tell you give you leads, maybe other people to talk to, other houses to visit. Someone remembers something — “Oh, I remember Christine Blasey was really upset about something that happened the night before — I think it was at this party at . . .” — and then, BOOM, you have a fresh lead.

People are acting like just because some of these people have made statements through their lawyers saying they don’t remember this party, that it never happened.

Friends, in the real world, when a crime is committed, just because potential witnesses say they don’t remember, that doesn’t mean anything.

Hell, that’s when a good investigator is just getting started.

Mark Judge claims he doesn’t remember?

For professional investigators, that’s not a dead end. That’s a starting point.

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But here’s the problem: If the FBI does its job well, that may do it more harm than good.

Grant my premise that the FBI is probably going to turn up some reasonably credible evidence that Blasey Ford and Kavanaugh attended the same party in the summer of 1982, corroborating specific details (house location, floor plan, event participants) given by Blasey Ford.

Or perhaps the FBI identifies a witness who was most definitely at the party, and most definitely claims the incident did take place. Maybe someone even saw Blasey Ford run down the stairs, upset . . .

Say the FBI comes out with this. What do you think Donald J. Trump is going to do?

A) Throw a giant parade for the FBI, declaring a “tremendous effort.”

B) Tell the Senate, “Back the drawing board; find me another justice — but make this one ethical.”

C) Blast the FBI on Twitter and Fox, calling the whole thing “a partisan witch hunt!” by “Rod Rosenstein and his Angry Democrats” and tarnish the bureau’s findings to the point where 1) half the American public believes him, and 2) Republican senators feel pressure to IGNORE the FBI’s findings and vote Kavanaugh in anyway.

I’ll take “C,” Vanna.

If there’s anything Donald Trump hates, it’s a free press and an independent system of law enforcement. Everything that he has done since he has become president is aimed at making the justice department into his personal weapon. He wants the Attorney General to be his fixer. The FBI Directory should take a loyalty oath. If the FBI turns up credible evidence that rains on his Supreme Court parade, Trump’s going to take it as a personal insult. Why aren’t they loyal to him?

He’s going to keep trying to tear them down, in doing so tearing at the fabric of the rule of law in this country.

This case isn’t just about the courts. It’s about having independent law enforcement unafraid to show a tyrannical president what he doesn’t like.

We’re about to see what happens then. I think I have a pretty good idea.